News alert - SOS Aloha has one reader who lives in Indonesia but she is far from the natural disasters. Hawaiians can relate to the tsunami destruction and volcano bursts. Hawaii is also a mixing bowl of all Pacific nations. So the Indonesian people remain in our thoughts and prayers.
Please join me in welcoming paranormal fantasy author P.L. Parker! From her website,
http://www.plparker.com/,
Offbeat is a perfect word when describing me. For many years, I taught, performed, as well as choreographed, dance. I am a dreamer and an avid reader of fiction, a sometimes gardener and an inept crafter. I love to travel, always returning to my beautiful Idaho where I reside with my husband, Jack, my children and extended family, Jared, Travis, Zachary, April and Tannis, two huge cats and a toy poodle.
Kim: The Hawaiians did not have a written language before the missionaries arrived in the 1820s. They relied upon chanters and dancers to record their history. What type of dance did you teach, perform, and choreograph?
P.L.: I taught
Beledi – better known as belly dance. With another woman, we organized and trained a troupe of dancers performing under the name of “The Marrakesh Express,” based on tribal but with a little bit of everything in it. It was exciting – more flamboyant than Egyptian belly dance, lots of full skirts, head drapes, tassels and noise makers.
Kim: Do you watch
DWTS? If you were a judge, who would you like to see perform on the show? What advice would you offer dancers?
P.L.: I’ve only glanced at the show off and on. I’m more of an
America’s Got Talent or
American Idol type of person. I'd give them the same advice as I gave my students: Dance with passion.
Kim: What grows in your garden?
P.L.: I love flowers. I’ve found, though, over the years that I’ve settled on perennials since annuals take planting every year and bending down for hours planting isn’t as fun as it used to be. For quite some time, I created what I called “fairy gardens” which were small, portable gardens that could be placed anywhere outside. I would use varieties of mother hen, low growing thyme, some tiny bloom flowers, all based around perhaps ceramic bears, fairies, gnomes, that sort of thing in arranged in a low pot. Sold quite a few of them, but they take a lot of work and planning and as I got more into the writing, those went by the way.
Kim: Which plants/flowers would you use to describe your writing style and books?
P.L.: Most of my books deal with time travel in some fashion. Time is lasting, therefore, perennials I would say – black roses for a specific.
Kim: Tell us about your travels - what are some of your favorite places you have visited?
P.L.: I do love Las Vegas. My husband and I have been there on numerous occasions and we have a great time. So much to see and do. I would love to travel to Hawaii and perhaps Scotland. Who hasn’t dreamed of a highland lover – not that my husband would approve of that, but at least see where all that romance begins.
Kim: What inspired you to write a time travel back to the "go west young man" period in Aimee's Locket?
P.L.: I’ve always loved time travel. Years ago, I watched the original
The Time Machine with Rod Taylor and Yvette Mimieux. The Morlocks scared me to death, but from then on, I was hooked. When reading for enjoyment, I find myself searching for a time travel book, but I always read fiction, paranormal for the greater part.
My prior two books,
Fiona and
Riley’s Journey, take the readers far back in time. In
Fiona, the discovery of the Urumchi Mummies in ancient China is my fact basis. In
Riley’s Journey, I use the discovery of the remains of an ancient female in Oregon as my fact basis. As to my novel
Aimee’s Locket, I decided I wanted to write a story that in essence could be proven in modern times, ergo, the diary and the locket. I’ve grown up living near the actual route of those early emigrants to the Oregon territories and it seemed a good fit.
Kim: How did you break into publishing?
P.L.: I wrote
Fiona in 2006, the final version in August of that year, sent the manuscript in to numerous publishers, but for some reason,
The Wild Rose Press caught my attention. In December of 2006, I submitted my manuscript to them and within a short time, it was accepted for publication. By that time, I’d finished
Riley’s Journey and submitted it to
TWRP and it was immediately accepted as well. I’ve been fortunate, I’ve only been writing for 4.5 years and I’ve sold 6 manuscripts. Amazing to me, but I am thankful.
Kim: What's next for
P.L. Parker?
P.L.: In September, I sold two manuscripts,
Absolution, a vampire story to
Eternal Press and
Into the Savage Dawn, the sequel to
Riley’s Journey to
Willow Moon Publishing – which I might add is owned by my original editor,
Ami Russell, who loved
Riley’s Journey and inspired me to write the sequel.
I am currently writing a SciFi story which is practically writing itself. I’m 2/3 the way through the manuscript and having a great time. Lots of humor (which I love) and a great adventure. A tweek: sort of a Westward the Women story only headed to the stars.
Thanks for inviting me to participate. I look forward to the posts by other authors.
Mahalo,
P.L., for joining us today! In honor of
P.L.'s visit, we are giving away three books:
-
Aimee's Locket:
The antique ivory locket was the key! Exquisite and enchanting, it drew Aimee like a magnet. Though the locket cost every spare penny she had, it was money well spent – or so she thought! Catapulted by the locket to the year 1847, Aimee finds herself alone in St. Louis, Missouri, the jumping off site for the Oregon Trail. The much touted slogan “Go West Young Man” takes on new meaning. Seattle, her home in the present, was a distant dream, and unless she found a suitable male willing to wed, Aimee would be left behind when the emigrant train left for the Oregon Territory. Penniless and without recourse, Aimee’s choices were few.
Jake Marshall, scout for the Markham Party, was the perfect, if unwilling, choice. Undaunted by his initial rudeness, Aimee entices him to the alter with the promise of her diamond earrings as payment, thereby securing her passage on the wagon train, and embarking on a chain of events that would ultimately end in the far reaches of the great American West.
-
Riley's Journey:
The research project was only supposed to be for an "extended period." No one said anything about forever! So Riley’s journey begins. Unknowingly sent back 40,000 years to be the mate of a man she had never before met, Riley struggles to understand and adjust. Her journey will take her into a world fraught with dangers – a world made more treacherous by savage beasts, primitive Neanderthals, and the incursion of the aggressive Cro-Magnon man.
Surviving alone for five years in this vast wilderness, Nathan, along with his enormous dog, Demon, carve out a life in the perilous environment. Though thrown together by forces beyond their control, love grows between Riley and Nathan – but will they survive?
- Fiona:
Love survives the ravages of time. Set against the backdrop of the Taklamakan Desert, Fiona, a modern young woman, finds herself transported to ancient China, to a time of barbarian warriors, marauding nomads from the northern steppes, and at what was then a crossroad between East and West. Fiona finds a new way of life in the arms of the handsome warrior, Kellach, a man of noble stature and a leader among the Celtic settlements ringing the great desert.
Desperate to return to the present and struggling against her mounting feelings, Fiona finally accepts her fate, exulting in the rapture and delights of Kellach’s love, only to have Voadicia, a beautiful seductress, destroy that dream of happiness.
To enter the book giveaway,
1. Contact
Kelley at
Columbussos@gmail.com to join
Operation Holiday Card. It is our goal to ensure that
1000 deployed airmen, marines, sailors, soldiers, and Coast Guardsmen receive a holiday card.
I am promoting
Operation Holiday Card through November 12 - if you have signed up, thank you!
2. Follow
Mary Gramlich, the Reading Reviewer, on her blogsite,
http://marygramlich.blogspot.com/.
Mary is graciously serving as my shipping agent. I am promoting her blogsite through November 12 - if you have signed up, thank you!
3. Leave a comment about
P.L.,
Beledi, faery gardens, and/or time travel.
The book giveaway is open to US residents only. Comments will be open through November 1 for the book giveaway.
Join us tomorrow as we have another double header:
-
Kimber An,
http://www.kimberan.com,/ a debut YA author recommended by
NYT bestselling fantasy author (and AF veteran)
Susan Grant.
Kimber An is giving away an ebook of her new release,
Sugar Rush.
-
Mary Gramlich, The Reading Reviewer and my SOS Partner. We'll talk about "second chances" and giveaway holiday books.
Mahalo,
Kim in Hawaii
For my last job in the Air Force, I served as a duty officer in the
Tanker Airlift Control Center (TACC) at
Scott AFB, IL. The operations center was divided into two "cells" - East and West. I worked with the West team whose Area of Responsibility (AOR) was west of the Mississippi River to the Indian/Pakistan border plus South America. The natural disasters, like the ones in Indonesia, posed the greatest challenges. When hurricanes ripped through the Caribbean, the US was ready to stage supplies through Puerto Rico. But the Navy airfield at Roosevelt Roads could only hold four C-5 aircraft at a time. And aircrews need 14 hours rest. So it was a challenge to juggle the schedule
and translate the Spanish explicates!
Likewise, a typhoon swept through Guam. It was a challenge to work with FEMA to determine how many telephone poles we could fit into the back of C-5 aircraft (I don't remember the answer). Plus finding available aircraft and aircrew. The coordinating diplomatic clearances within operating hours through friendly countries and airspace. But we did it as part of the Air Force's
Global Reach.
Today, my challenge is to manage the shelf space at the Thrift Shop. Naturally, I sort and shelve the donated books. The Thrift shop raises over $60,000 a year for community grants and family member scholarships. Plus it is a great place to find a Halloween costume.
The staff dressed up in costumes on Friday. Most are
Air Force spouses, including
Mary the Hershey Bar. She is
84 years young and volunteers at the Thrift Shop, Airmen's Attic, and Mary Jane House. Mary's husband, a retired Air Force officer, is buried in the
Punchbowl Cemetery. Mary is an inspiration to us all!
Norm the Hillbilly is a retired
Coast Guard Warrant Officer. He is my "go to man" when I have a question about the Coast Guard, especially when it is referenced by
Hawaii Five-O. Per
Norm, the Coast Guard searches for live bodies and leaves the dead ones for the Honolulu Police Department (McGarrett has tasked Danno three times to request the
Coast Guard to retrieve a submerged body).
Barbara the Tweedle Dee is Norm's wife, hence, a
career Coast Guard spouse. She also works part time for HUD, helping Hawaiians find homes.
Ginger the Red Riding Hood is Norm's daughter, hence a
Coast Guard brat. But she is also a
Coast Guard spouse. It's incredible that we have generations of military families working together!
